I mean no offense to the COrtex headphones, however, you need to take Amazon reviews with a grain of salt though.
For example....from one of the reviews posted there...
The idea of the Grados isolating better than any closed headphone (I own the Grados) is ludicrous.

You have to take all reviews with a grain of salt! (Head-fi far more than Amazon..) But that one freak doesn't know what isolation means doesn't mean anything re the guy who found that his cortexes were tougher than his sonys. It's pretty easy to know how much of a hammering you've given a pair of phones.

You have to take all reviews with a grain of salt! (Head-fi far more than Amazon..) But that one freak doesn't know what isolation means doesn't mean anything re the guy who found that his cortexes were tougher than his sonys. It's pretty easy to know how much of a hammering you've given a pair of phones.

Fair enough. My loaner set just got here, and they do indeed seem built very solidly. Let the listening commence!

Early impressions are very good!
A fun sound sig, definitely....not a "reference" can. A slight midrange bump and they're very enjoyable. Amazingly efficient too...the ReplayGained Clip Zip is still pumping them very well, and there seems to be no benefit to amping them.

I can't seem them as truly portable, given their size and the weight of the cord.....but definitely transportable. Seems like they'd hold up well to being in a backpack.

No, not reference. These are the "fun cans",...I luv the sound. And yes, the mids are all there in their glory. The best part, for me, is the bass+clarity. That's hard to find, even in the more expensive cans. I sold my ATH-Pro700MK II's because they sounded muddy & veiled compared to the CHP-2500's,... To me that says quite a lot.

No, not reference. These are the "fun cans",...I luv the sound. And yes, the mids are all there in their glory. The best part, for me, is the bass+clarity. That's hard to find, even in the more expensive cans. I sold my ATH-Pro700MK II's because they sounded muddy & vailed compared to the CHP-2500's,... To me that says quite a lot.

When I said

Quote:

A slight midrange bump and they're very enjoyable.

I actually meant I was giving them a slight bump with EQ. You're absolutely right about the bass and clarity.....I just found some of the mids slightly recessed in comparison. And when I say I gave them a slight bump, I'm talking 2db at 2khz, and 2db at 4khz.....not much of a bump.

Overall, these are about the best value/SQ I think I've heard. So what's the purpose of the pad stuffage?

Overall, these are about the best value/SQ I think I've heard. So what's the purpose of the pad stuffage?

The extra padding is to give my floppy ears extra space away from the drivers. It's for comfort, nothing more. The set I have here doesn't have the padding because I changed the ear pads,...feels quite good now.

The extra padding is to give my floppy ears extra space away from the drivers. It's for comfort, nothing more. The set I have here doesn't have the padding because I changed the ear pads,...feels quite good now.

Makes sense....they do look like they'd be shallow. Not an issue with my JVC's, thankfully.....their cups are deeper. Although in fairness they're a little smaller front-to-back.....more oval shaped than round.

The extra padding is to give my floppy ears extra space away from the drivers. It's for comfort, nothing more. The set I have here doesn't have the padding because I changed the ear pads,...feels quite good now.